Cold urticaria Puns

Title mostly says it.

Can cold be a hive trigger even if it’s not cold urticaria?

I myself have cold urticaria but one of my kids is having a hive breakout and the only real difference we can pinpoint is that it’s been SUPER cold the last couple of days and their bedroom is very chilly.

Taking several Benadryl helps but the hives are just popping up all over. Any one hive/bunch lasts between a few hours to a little less than a day.

I did the ice cube test on them and it was negative but I’m not sure if the Benadryl could effect that.

The one thing that really made it better was having them come sit in the living room by the fireplace to be nice and warm.

TL/DR: could the cold temps cause hives even if it’s not cold urticaria/had a failed ice cube test?

Male - I've self diagnosed myself with cold urticaria 3 years ago (my arms, legs and face would be covered with hives if i stay out in the cold for too long). I've visited 2 doctors to test for cold urticaria - both came inconclusive. Recently, I noticed a pattern where if I eat too much sugary foods and get exposed to cold temps, the hives will come out more easily.

Could the sugary foods cause the cold allergy to be more aggressive?

I'm honestly at my wits ends. I get cold urticaria and I live in Canada. I KNOW its dangerous and could lead to anaphylaxis and I don't want it to get to that point.

Rn I'm on rupall (I forget the dose) it helps w my corn allergy but not my cold allergy.

I literally get hives all over my body and I scratch so bad I look like a drug addict. My skin crawls and its such a horrible feeling.

I'm talking to my allergist in November. She doesn't specialize in mcas but she's been really attentive with my case. I just don't know what to ask for her. I haven't really looked up cold urticaria much I just know I have it and it sucks.

Has anyone ever experienced their cold urticaria to go away and come back several years later?

What medications seem to work best for everyone? I personally have taken an H1 blocker, on top of an H2 blocker daily. What H1 and H2 blocker combinations seem to work best for you? I have taken Allertec (H1) (20-40mg a day) and Pepcid (H2) (10-20mg a day) since I was diagnosed. If I don’t take this amount, I seem to experience a breakout whenever my skin is exposed to the cold air.

Some info: 19, female Meds:

• Yaz BC pill (started 10/18 to manage excruciating cramps)
• Vit d (maintains healthy levels according to recent test)
• ‘Executive B’ (for stress response)
• Fish oil (in an effort to help manage mental fatigue probably induced by Yaz)
• Ferrograd iron (ending today due to doctor advice - within healthy levels)
• Blackmores hair skin and nails (contains iron, ending today for same reason as previous)

Medical conditions: Anxiety (ocd, hypochondria (lol)), shellfish/mollusc allergy (developed around age 13~14) and…

So, I can’t say exactly when it started, but I remember coming home one cold night around 5 years ago developing an uncontrollable itch across all of my limbs. Red spots, then swelling, and they just got worse as I scratched.

I had an ear infection in 2018 and developed a fever which threw off my temperature and I developed the same rash. This is the only other especially severe time I remember getting it - I’m not 100% certain I experienced it at all during that year gap until the infection.

Since, it’s been induced by air conditioners, and seemingly just the cold? I don’t get it all the time when I feel cold, hell, sometimes I get it when I’m warm in many layers with a heater on. But it’s evolved from those little red spots to proper hives - angry, red, and spreading with scratching.

I seem to develop two versions, sometimes simultaneously- pink itchy patches, that I know if I scratch will turn into hives, or already just…hives, that aren’t itchy unless I actively scratch them but I can ignore so long as I don’t touch them (these also usually stay for hours, slowly fading until they go).

I just…I hope someone can help me fix this. It’s so incredibly inconvenient and I feel like I’ve tried everything I can to fix it and nothing is working. Why did I develop this so randomly and why is it worsening?

I feel like I’ve lost hope. I already have anxiety and it’s infuriating to constantly fear every time I go out, especially at night: ‘what if I get cold? What if I get hives?’ I’m 19, I feel like I can’t enjoy being young if I’m constantly afraid.

Thank you so much for reading this through if you’ve gotten this far and I would appreciate any advice at all that you can provide 💛

Edit: formatting

Today is one of the worst days of my life. In 2018, I had my first case of CU and it was horrible, had to drink antihistamines, avoid cold places, etc. But miraculously it went away. It got weaker and weaker and then eventually I was back to normal. Fast forward to 2021 and I woke up with intense itching on my arms (only happens on my hands/arms). I thought I was finally free :(( anyone else who experienced this?

I live in south Florida (which I feel pretty lucky about, due to my CU) but it was so frustrating and confusing to me because I didn’t even know that being allergic to the cold was a “thing”. I remember being 13 and my hands started to itch. I tried to wash off whatever was making them itch and nothing worked, so I just walked around a cold mall with burning hands until they stopped itching. My first skin reaction was in the winter when I sat on a metal bench that left my legs covered in hives. And the hives became more frequent when I would wash the dishes (I splash a lot) my whole stomach would break out in hives. At this point I told my parents that I thought I was allergic to either water or the cold. With more experience we discovered that it was the cold. But that the cold water was worse since it stays on the body longer. I really don’t have to worry about much being here in Florida. Just warmers under my clothes at work. And gloves to wash dishes. My main problem is my dream to be a marine biologist. I have a bachelors in marine biology but I am scared to pursue an actual career because for most of my labs when the water was cool or cold I would break out in hives or I just sat outside of the water taking notes. Does anyone have advice on how to stay warm in the ocean for long periods of time?

Hi all! My name is Emilio and I am a healthcare consultant working with various pharmaceutical and biotech companies in their patient engagement and advocacy efforts. I would like to inform you about a unique opportunity for individuals diagnosed with chronic induced urticaria (CIndU; either heat or cold induced or pressure/friction induced).

A global pharmaceutical company aims to deepen its understanding of the experiences and perceptions of people living or caring for individuals with CIndU. The company is looking to identify a group of people living the condition, who are willing to share their experience, to participate in a series of virtual meetings during the course of 2021.

The engagements will be held virtually on a web-based discussion platform called Within3. This will allow participants to log on and participate in the discussion at their own convenience.  The total anticipated time commitment for 2021 would be 10-12 hours (4 hours per meeting). The first engagement will take place between July-August 2021. Participants will be compensated for their time.

If you are over 18 years old, have been diagnosed with CIndU, and are interested in participating, please contact me at eamador@vozadvisors.com for more information.

https://vozadvisors.com/

I have heard the benefits of taking cold showers and have been really wanting to start incorporating it into my routine but I am worried with my allergy to the cold if it would be life threatening to chance it.

Hey guys, I wanted to ask a couple questions about other peoples experience with Cold Urticaria, and figured this would be a good place to hear back from.

I'm a male in his 20's who has both Cold Urticaria, and Aquagenic Urticaria. I've had them both since I was about 13-14 years old. I honestly have no idea how I managed to get both of those allergies, but for the most part it's what I live with.

One thing that has always confused me about my Cold Urticaria is that it tends to come and go in ways I don't personally understand. Sometimes I go Months, to even a year sometimes without my skin reacting violently to cold, and then suddenly one day my hand is in really bad itchy pain because I held an otter pop. Then after I have a bad reaction I usually have to be very careful of cold things for a while, to avoid any more reactions shortest I've had was a week, and longest was about a year and a half, but like I said for some reason it just comes and goes. Typically my Aquagenic Urticaria is much more consistent, and I know how to play around it to avoid bad reactions, but the problem is with my Cold Urticaria I never know. I was curious if any of you have had similar variation in reactions over time. I have no idea if this is a common thing, or not as there's sadly not much information on allergies like these.

Hi all. I’m a 18yo F with the less common form of CU (familial) which is a genetic variant of the other types. I know everyone has been asking around about the vaccine but I was wondering if anyone has this variant and has received it. Due to the wonderful US healthcare system, I don’t have an appointment with my rheumatologist until June. Any feedback would be great. Thanks.

I tried the ice cube test multiple times. I never get an immediate reaction. Eventually, I will see a tiny hive on a completely random part of my body.

Today it was on the back of my leg (I put the ice cube on my forearm). Any of your guys get similar symptoms?

I always get small itchy bumps, never anything serious.

I have cold urticaria. It basically means that I'm allergic to the cold. I get hives when cold hits my skin. Not just any hives; massive, relentlessly itchy, all-over-my-body, hives. The colder it is, the worse they are. Does anyone else here deal with this, and maybe have some tips or tricks to help alleviate the symptoms without antihistamines? I'm trying not to scratch, but I look insane just slapping the shit out of myself. Halp?

I have cholinergic urticaria since I will get urticaria after intense exercise or a hot shower. But I also seem to get urticaria from cold water. E.g at the pool or the beach I seem to be developing urticaria. The onset however isn’t as quick - I usually have about 30 minutes before developing.

Does this happen to anyone else?

This is a forum that I did not expect to find myself in this morning.

I was released from quarantine today as it's been over 10 days since my positive COVID test. I was totally asymptomatic and my test was a huge surprise. I went out with my husband for a walk to celebrate and it was quite cold--I was bundled up on top but only had leggings on bottom. The walk itself was normal when we came back in, I noticed that my calves were incredibly itchy. I took off my leggings to find that both my legs were bright red and it looked like very small welts were beginning to form. I googled "cold allergies," took some Benadryl, crawled under tons of blankets to get warm and here I am now... my skin looks totally normal now and the itchiness disappeared almost immediately after the benadryl blankets combo.

I haven't found anything about folks developing CU post-COVID, but I've seen that it can be found post-viral and it makes sense with everything I've heard about COVID, circulation, immune responses, and the overall weirdness of the disease itself. I'm going to do the icecube test tomorrow when the benadryl is out of my system. I have to say the welts themselves were not immediately evident, but the itchiness was noticeable and debilitating.... I go back to work on Monday and am terrified it will happen again just walking in the building from my car...

Just found out what this condition is today. Some background on my health: I have many food allergies and take an inhaler but otherwise I consider myself an health individual.

Today I was out in the cold for about 2-3 hours. Everything was fine when I was outside. I came inside and warmed up for 10-15 minutes. After, I started getting hives. All over my bum, thighs, and knees. It’s very itchy and bumpy, ugh!! No hives anywhere else .

This is the 3rd time I can recall this happening. If I’m outside in the cold for a short period of time nothing happens. It usually happens when I get very cold, and hives start once I have went inside and warmed up. Is this cold urticaria?

Edit: I saw people talking about cold water as well. Often after a swim at the beach I would get hives as well but I always thought it was due to irritation from salt

http://imgur.com/gallery/EGoQrls

Link to what it looks like when I went swimming a couple of years ago. It's really dangerous, as I can go into an anaphylactic shock.

ATTENTION EVERYONE:

Needed to make this post because there was very little help out there when I first developed CU

Granted my symptoms aren’t as severe as others. I usually get huge hives/ welts on my face and my ears burn when the temperature drops.

Here’s what I’m doing:

I now use the homeopathic remedy Potenised APIS MEL 30C - highly recommend it hives/welts disappear within minutes of taking it. It’s also preventative you can take it before you go out in cold and won’t develop hives/welts. - HIGHLY RECOMMEND it acts like a natural antihistamine (without the drowsiness).

Going forward I will try cutting out dairy, processed sugar, and gluten. I have read studies which link cold urticaria to coeliac disease/ hypothyroidism. Sugar is also known to cause inflammation in the body.

I just want to spread the word for what works for me.

Please comment on what has been successful for you.

Let’s help each other!

Do any of you experience hives when exposed to hot temperatures? I definitely have cold urticaria and it affects my quality of life way more, but I also get those all-too-familiar welts when taking a hot shower (this feels particularly agitating and usually downright painful) as well as when sweating occasionally.

I wonder whether this is a thing, or whether I may have two separate conditions or an entirely different one. I do also break out in hives when I have a strong emotional reactions or when I'm otherwise stressed, but the cold symptoms are the "primary" ones as they're consistent and occur without exceptions. These all started in my early 20s, but I can remember my fingertips swelling like balloons from temperature changes for as long as I've walked.

I haven't gotten formally diagnosed but I like to think I don't have cancer as I've had my blood checked for other reasons since and don't really have any other symptoms, but I'm curious about whether other skin related allergic reactions occur in others with cold urticaria.

Hey guys,

Just found out what this allergy was and I think I may have it. I have always noticed hives around my body and bumps on my knuckles that really hurt during the winter, but didn't know where they came from. I am also super sensitive to the cold, like going into the pool in the summer would make my body feel weird. It got worse this November, I had come home from standing out side in the cold for 2 hours to vote. I wanted to get warm and so turned on the heat in my bedroom and got under the covers. Within 10 minutes, my whole leg was itching, red, enflamed, and COVERED in hives. I had always had this and thought it was just dry skin. But this time, it was completely different, I mean, my entire leg was covered in hives. I almost started bleeding from scratching so much. I had to distract myself to not scratch. Now every time I go out in the cold, I notice the hives and they are getting worse than from before. So what do you guys think? Where exactly does this come from? Do I have to move out of cold climates?

i was outside shoveling for about an hour and a half. when i came inside i started to warm up and got the normal cold to warm temperature change itch. then my eyes started to swell shut. i went to the ER where i discovered full body hives and my throat started closing. IV of benadryl, steroid, and ativan. has this happened to anyone else? does this mean i can’t have cold drinks or foods anymore :( i had an iced coffee this morning and was fine! i’m really alone and scared

Happened during a hike. Average reaction.

Man...what took me so long to discover Reddit. I honestly felt so alone until I discovered Reddit and found people who experience the same things I experience. I apologize for this extremely long rant, but it’s such a relief to know that I’m not alone in this! I've read so many of your posts and I just wanted to share what it has been like for me living with CU.

I also have cold urticaria. I had it my entire life, I’m in my early 30s now. It’s such an uncommon allergy, so I had no idea I had it when I was really young. I just knew I was itchy a lot. Even in elementary school, during PE, I would break out in hives — swollen, itchy, red, bumpy. I justified this was normal because everyone else would at least turn red during physical activities.

I continued life thinking it was completely normal to be itchy nearly everyday. Even on the days when my K-12 teachers would turn on the AC to “keep us awake”, despite knowing that I felt like I was gonna pass out from the cold. I would literally get so dizzy that I’d be light-headed for the next few days. But again, I assumed it was normal and everyone experienced this.

It wasn’t until I was in high school when a family member brought up that I was probably allergic to the cold. I Googled it and sure enough, there were articles on cold urticaria. I had it confirmed by a dermatologist. I felt a lot of relief when I was able to put a label on what I was experiencing, but also really sad that I lived with this for nearly 18 years of my life at that point, thinking that was normal life (maybe ignorance is bliss though?).

For me, my cold urticaria starts on my butt (what a lovely sight to imagine…but boy does suck to not be able to scratch your butt in public!), knees, hands, then elbows, then legs, arms, face, stomach. As silly as it sounds, I hated that I missed out on being able to wear shorts, skirts, or dresses because the symptoms are so unattractive, and it makes people think I’m diseased and contagious or just plain disgusting/repulsive.

When I started working after college, it was hard. I’ve worked at a few companies where the building is maintained 70-72F, which is far too cold for me. I’m a software engineer so being able to type is important, but if it’s cold, my hives take over my hands to the point that I can’t move them. Not to

Some info: 19, female Meds:

• Yaz BC pill (started 10/18 to manage excruciating cramps)
• Vit d (maintains healthy levels according to recent test)
• ‘Executive B’ (for stress response)
• Fish oil (in an effort to help manage mental fatigue probably induced by Yaz)
• Ferrograd iron (ending today due to doctor advice - within healthy levels)
• Blackmores hair skin and nails (contains iron, ending today for same reason as previous)

Medical conditions: Anxiety (ocd, hypochondria (lol)), shellfish/mollusc allergy (developed around age 13~14) and…

So, I can’t say exactly when it started, but I remember coming home one cold night around 5 years ago developing an uncontrollable itch across all of my limbs. Red spots, then swelling, and they just got worse as I scratched.

I had an ear infection in 2018 and developed a fever which threw off my temperature and I developed the same rash. This is the only other especially severe time I remember getting it - I’m not 100% certain I experienced it at all during that year gap until the infection.

Since, it’s been induced by air conditioners, and seemingly just the cold? I don’t get it all the time when I feel cold, hell, sometimes I get it when I’m warm in many layers with a heater on. But it’s evolved from those little red spots to proper hives - angry, red, and spreading with scratching.

I seem to develop two versions, sometimes simultaneously- pink itchy patches, that I know if I scratch will turn into hives, or already just…hives, that aren’t itchy unless I actively scratch them but I can ignore so long as I don’t touch them (these also usually stay for hours, slowly fading until they go).

I just…I hope someone can help me fix this. It’s so incredibly inconvenient and I feel like I’ve tried everything I can to fix it and nothing is working. Why did I develop this so randomly and why is it worsening?

I feel like I’ve lost hope. I already have anxiety and it’s infuriating to constantly fear every time I go out, especially at night: ‘what if I get cold? What if I get hives?’ I’m 19, I feel like I can’t enjoy being young if I’m constantly afraid.

Thank you so much for reading this through if you’ve gotten this far and I would appreciate any advice at all that you can provide 💛

Edit: formatting

Hi all! My name is Emilio and I am a healthcare consultant working with various pharmaceutical and biotech companies in their patient engagement and advocacy efforts. I would like to inform you about a unique opportunity for individuals diagnosed with chronic induced urticaria (CIndU; either heat or cold induced or pressure/friction induced).

A global pharmaceutical company aims to deepen its understanding of the experiences and perceptions of people living or caring for individuals with CIndU. The company is looking to identify a group of people living the condition, who are willing to share their experience, to participate in a series of virtual meetings during the course of 2021.

The engagements will be held virtually on a web-based discussion platform called Within3. This will allow participants to log on and participate in the discussion at their own convenience.  The total anticipated time commitment for 2021 would be 10-12 hours (4 hours per meeting). The first engagement will take place between July-August 2021. Participants will be compensated for their time.

If you are over 18 years old, have been diagnosed with CIndU, and are interested in participating, please contact me at eamador@vozadvisors.com for more information.

https://vozadvisors.com/